


Bring It Back Together

by agirlcalledbob



Series: Pygmalion [2]
Category: Kingsman (Movies)
Genre: Back to life, Established Relationship, Explicit Sexual Content, Fluff, Husbands, Kidnapping, M/M, Memory Loss, Not Kingsman: The Golden Circle Compliant, Quite, though some bits
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2020-09-18
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:14:39
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25241491
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/agirlcalledbob/pseuds/agirlcalledbob
Summary: “Hey Harry. Got something for you.” He lifted his sweater to reveal an adorable Cairn Terrier puppy, a tiny thing of curly sandy fur and snuffling nose. “It’s Mr. Pickle. Say hi.”Eggsy put the puppy down and Harry bent instantly to pet him, cooing over his lovable wiggling bum.“Move away from the dog, Galahad.” Eggsy was pointing a huge black pistol right at the dog’s head.“What? What are you doing?”“The dog has to go. It’s the mission. Step away.”
Relationships: Harry Hart | Galahad/Merlin, Percival/Gary "Eggsy" Unwin
Series: Pygmalion [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1828582
Comments: 27
Kudos: 24





	1. Memories

**Author's Note:**

> So, inspired by Golden Circle, but not going to directly follow the film (as will become obvious by the end of chapter 1).
> 
> A follow on to 'Pygmalion' though I don't think you have to have read that.

He wasn’t comfortable. He couldn’t remember the last time he had been. But this was more than just the shadow of an ache behind his left eye, or, he knew from touch, what _used_ to be his left eye. It more than the aches running down his body, that the nice doctors and nurses kept assuring him would stop soon.

He didn’t know when ‘soon’ was meant to be – they always managed to avoid answering that question, which frustrated him eternally, giving him the thought that, despite his gentle nature, he hadn’t always been someone who accepted being brushed off.

Ms Ginger – she’d told him a long time ago (how long? He couldn’t quite pin that down) that she wasn’t a doctor, though she did rather act like one – was a bit better at answering questions, but only mainly in the vein of admitting she didn’t know the answers he was looking for.

He’d asked her when he’d be able to get back to his studies, but she’d said it was unclear, even as she ordered him piles of lepidoptery and other entomology texts, which he’d said was very generous, and she’d responded that he was a great gentleman. He’d asked if he would be allowed a mirror in his room, for shaving, but she’d said it wouldn’t be a great idea, even though someone had come later that day, and every few days since, to give him a wet shave, which he found unnerving, for some reason, but held down his responses because it would be very rude to Ms Ginger to punch the man she’d been kind enough to send. 

Ms Ginger asked her own questions too, but he was equally distanced from being able to answer her, though he’d picked up a few things from the way she worded them. Even though he felt twenty-five inside his head, and she refused him his mirror, he knew whatever had caused this fuzziness in his brain had taken a chunk of his memories too. Not only because he could _feel_ the age on himself, in his skin, and muscles. He could look down on himself in slight horror, because he knew he should be seeing his own smooth, lean body, but he was seeing something that looked, to him, rather like one of those individuals who had lost an enormous amount of weight and been left with too much skin.

No, not just because of his aged physique, but also because there were sparks inside his mind that there was certainly something more joyful about his life than this roomy, windowless space suggested. Even more so than the memories he could pin down (ha!), happy as they were, about his studies, and how much he enjoyed the fields and meadows of the English countryside. And there was something even there, in the background, that he’d rather enjoyed the Scottish countryside, too; fens and moorlands, and striding out in tweed with a heavy walking stick on one side and, and a strong _arm_ through his, on the other?

Ms Ginger hadn’t allowed him a calendar, hadn’t said why, but he’d surmised she’d thought watching the passing of time would bother him. Though it wasn’t on the list of things they discussed explicitly, he thought she was suspecting that he wasn’t really aware of the passing of time – she spoke to him as if every day was part of the same one – but he _was_ extremely aware, and listened carefully to the people who passed through his room, and he thought today was Tuesday.

And it was Tuesday when everything changed.

* * * * * 

“You have to let us see him,” Eggsy was breathing heavily, his beautiful green eyes wild with the panic that they didn’t _actually_ have to let them do anything. This agency was easily as efficient as Kingsman, and Felix knew Kingsman wouldn’t just let two unknown individuals pile into the room of an equally unknown person of interest to them.

But they were being surprisingly accommodating.  
“We will,” Ginger responded, as Tequila huffed. “What?” She turned on him. “They can answer all the questions we’ve wanted to know.”  
“I can understand your reticence,” Felix said to the huge agent as he scowled down, “but Harry is extremely important to us.”  
“He’s called Harry?”  
“Yes,” Eggsy turned to her, “he doesn’t even remember that?”  
“Well, I think he thinks he’s called Hart. That’s what he told us, and we got no sense he was lying. But we couldn’t find trace of him anywhere in missing person records.”  
Felix wondered what methods they used to determine that Harry was telling the truth. The room they were in was luxuriously old fashioned, with wooden panelling and comfortable arm chairs before a roaring fire, but the back of the room was one huge one-way mirror, through which they could see the room Harry was casually pacing, with a slight limp. He seemed smaller in that space than Felix remembered him, weaker. It might have been the missing eye, the sight of which had brought forth sobs from Eggsy, amidst quiet mutterings that he wouldn’t be able to shoot any more. The space he was pacing looked hyper-modern. Everything gleamed, and was clean, and white, and shiny. Harry must be hating it.

“Does he know you watch him from behind the mirror?” Felix asked, as Harry paused his pacing to cast his remaining eye over the rectangle before him, with a judgmental scowl.  
“There’s no mirror on his side. It’s a picture. Modern art. I don’t think he likes it,” Ginger admitted.  
“He wouldn’t. His surname is Hart, by the way, and he wouldn’t be on any missing person list. You say you got no sense of lying from him, so what has he told you?”  
“Nothing. The circumstances we found him in made us suspect he was an important man. Or skilled, at least, to walk out of that church. But the wound damaged his ability to recall memories. We’ve conducted multiple scans over the last year, and he seems to have no problem creating new memories, and seems to have almost perfect recall of his life up to around twenty-five.”  
“It would explain why he recalled his surname – he was in the army then. I believe he was about to leave to take up a research and teaching post at a university.”  
“But the fact that you’re here…I’m guessing he didn’t actually do that.”

Felix glanced at Eggsy, whose eyes hadn’t left Harry. Merlin had given them permission to reveal anything necessary to get Harry home, but these guys – Statesman – would want more than empty promises, he was pretty sure.  
“You know of Kingsman, I assume?”  
Tequila gasped but Ginger held herself cooler and just nodded.  
“Harry Hart was the top agent at Kingsman when he was shot by Richmond Valentine a year ago.”  
“You usually give out the names of your agents?”  
“No. But I’m guessing it will be a long time before Harry is ready to be back in the field.”  
“You might be right. Though physically he’s improving far quicker than our doctors thought would happen. And if he gets his memories back…”

* * * * * 

Eggsy was eager, though Felix hung back a little. Besides the fact that Eggsy was far more likely to prompt memories than him, having spent so much time with Harry right up to the shooting, he wasn’t as certain as Eggsy that the mere sight of them would be enough to bring him back.

“Oh my God, Harry, Haz, it’s amazing to see you, we thought…well never mind that, it’s just great to see you looking so well.” Eggsy flung himself at Harry, pulling him into a hug that almost knocked the older man over. He regained his balance quickly, but there was no recognition in his eyes as his arms hung limply by his side, until Eggsy backed away uncertainly.  
“Harry?”  
Eggsy sounded so distraught, Felix couldn’t stop himself from pulling him back and wrapping his arms around him in comfort. This wasn’t technically a mission, though he was pretty sure Merlin would have kittens if he saw the action, and Harry too, if he were in his right mind, but he just looked at them with a slightly blank smile. 

“I’m sorry? Do I know you?”  
Felix soothed Eggsy as he turned with a sob and burrowed his face into Felix’s neck.  
“Agent Galahad, Agent Percival reporting for duty,” Felix tried, though the impact may have been lessened by a still snuffling Eggsy.  
“Agent what-now? I’m awfully sorry, I think you may have me confused with someone else. I suppose you might want to call me Captain Hart, if we’re being formal.”

“Ginger, could we take Harry into the other room? The atmosphere may be more convivial than in here.”  
The serious-faced woman nodded and guided them into the first room, where they stood around slightly awkwardly until Harry looked over at the large window with horror.  
“That’s my room! You’ve been watching me? Even when…?”  
“Gosh, no!” Ginger flushed and pressed a series of buttons on her tablet until the window had turned into a large oil painting. “We haven’t, I promise. It’s simply a security measure.”  
“And why would you need a security measure against me? I tend to work far more in theory than anything else, these days. Your butterflies are safe from me.”

Felix looked at Eggsy. They were getting desperate; they couldn’t take Harry home to London like this, the poor man would be beyond confused.  
“Keep him occupied,” Eggsy whispered, and dragged Tequila off to the doorway.

Felix tried, talking to Harry about the things he should know, should remember. His little mews house, the estate, the tailor shop, his favourite coffee shop. But there was no recognition, other than his claim that he preferred tea, and he liked a tailored suit. 

When Eggsy barrelled back into the room, Felix felt drained in a way a mission never left him. A couple of hours trying to convince Harry of who he was, with nothing but vague smiles and the odd wandering eye, as if Harry was watching an invisible something moving around the room, had left him bereft. It wasn’t exactly what he was trained for, but he felt as though he was letting his old friend down.

Eggsy had a smug look on his face, and a wriggling jumper?  
“Hey Harry. Got something for you.” He lifted his sweater to reveal an adorable Cairn Terrier puppy, a tiny thing of curly sandy fur and snuffling nose. “It’s Mr. Pickle. Say hi.”  
Eggsy put the puppy down and Harry bent instantly to pet him, cooing over his lovable wiggling bum.

“Move away from the dog, Galahad.” Eggsy was pointing a huge black pistol right at the dog’s head.  
“What? What are you doing?”  
“The dog has to go. It’s the mission. Step away.”  
“No,” Harry wailed as Eggsy engaged the trigger pull.

It happened almost too fast for Felix to see. Harry reached over, hand over Eggsy’s, re-engaging the safety, while he kicked Eggsy’s solar plexus, knocking him back into a chair, spinning and loosing the clip, before handing the disarmed weapon to Ginger and scooping the puppy up.

“Galahad? That was…”  
“Would you stop with this? How could you point a gun at a puppy? That’s so cruel.”  
Eggsy’s face dropped, and he looked close to tears.  
“I was so sure,” he whispered.

Ginger pressed a finger against her ear.  
“Oh no,” she muttered, flicking her fingers over her tablet until a watercolour of a farm above the fire turned into a television. Felix considered that Stateman obviously liked their tech. Ginger and Merlin would get on like a house on fire. 

His thoughts were disrailed though, at the sight of said man, leaning in close to the camera, furrows of worry on his brow, grey smoke billowing behind him.  
“Oh, thank Christ, I thought they’d got --- communications.”  
“What’s going on Merlin?” Felix glanced to Harry, who was standing off to the side, the puppy against his neck, staring with wide eyes, his mouth seeming to form a name.  
“They’ve----” The call was crackling, signal interrupted and image shuddering. “---invasion--- Golden –cle --- kings--- --- --- --- exploded --- ---fehouse. Need to --- source. --- --- plane. Bring Ha---”  
His voice was cut off by a blow from a black clad arm, and Merlin was dragged away from the screen, just before a huge explosion rocked the room, debris flying across the crackling image.  
“What? No!” Eggsy yelled.  
“It’s obvious. Someone called Golden Circle has attacked the estate, but the agents, hopefully all of them, evacuated to a safehouse. We need to track this Golden Circle down and get Merlin back.” Harry sounded restrainedly furious, and very much himself.

Eggsy and Percival turned to him with open mouths.  
“Come on gentlemen, if anyone was going to sort out whatever’s happening to my brain, it was going to be my husband.”


	2. Mile High

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Felix!” Eggsy gasped as he was slammed against the door of the plane’s luxurious bedroom, any further words cut off by the demanding mouth over his, sucking and nipping at his lower lip. Felix could feel the moment he relaxed, felt Eggsy giving his body over in a way that did not fail to send his own heartbeat skyrocketing. Felix moved to mouthing at the perfect, smooth column of Eggsy’s neck, smirking as Eggsy thunked his head back against the door._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A reminder - the happenings will not be canon - but parts will certainly be canon-adjacent. Megalomania is great fun on the big screen, and in comics, but I like my villains marginally more low-key, and very, very selfish.

“How are you feeling, Harry?”  
Felix could see that Harry was getting increasingly frustrated by Eggsy’s constant solicitous enquiries about his wellbeing, but he didn’t see much chance in stopping him from his mother-henning. The boy was far too pleased to have the old Harry back. Except…they didn’t really have their old Harry back, not yet. Not while he was still so uncharacteristically unsteady, in body and speech and, apparently, mind.

Of course, the sight of Merlin had re-awoken him, but Felix was concerned that the follow-up sight of Merlin being struck down and, possibly, blown up might have knocked one too many things loose in his head. 

Ginger had been extremely reluctant to allow him to leave their medical care and, even with Eggsy and Felix announcing that they were taking him one way or another, she’d only finally agreed when they’d accepted her and Tequila could both come too. So, here they were, buckling up on one of the Kingsman jets, Tony, their pilot, greeting Harry with a warm ‘Welcome back, Sir’ and barely doing more than glancing at the two new faces once Felix, or rather, Agent Percival, had informed him they had appropriate clearance.

They had nothing of the sort, but these were interesting times. He’d tried to contact the Estate, obviously, but nothing was going through, and he was somewhat kicking himself for both his and Eggsy’s work phones being securely locked in the safe in Merlin’s office – which apparently no longer existed – as they couldn’t get in touch with anyone that way. Their glasses had been dead since the explosion and no amount of tapping was making anything come to life. He knew Eggsy was doing his best not to panic about there being no response from Roxy’s private number, but they were both wondering whether Harry’s interpretation of Merlin’s words – that the agents had all got to safehouses – was correct.

When they were in the air, and Eggsy had asked Harry for the fourteenth time if he was okay or if he needed anything, and Harry had bared his teeth and made an aborted growl of frustration, Felix knew something had to be done.

“Felix!” Eggsy gasped as he was slammed against the door of the plane’s luxurious bedroom, any further words cut off by the demanding mouth over his, sucking and nipping at his lower lip. Felix could feel the moment he relaxed, felt Eggsy giving his body over in a way that did not fail to send his own heartbeat skyrocketing. Felix moved to mouthing at the perfect, smooth column of Eggsy’s neck, smirking as Eggsy thunked his head back against the door.

“Come on,” Felix shuffled his unprotesting boyfriend towards the bed, quickly flicking the door lock, “you need to unwind.”  
“Fe,” Eggsy giggled as Felix laid him down, pushing his shirt up so he could nip at those carved abs, “they’ll know, Fe, come on.”  
“I don’t care. Our holiday was cut short. I had so many extra plans for all the sordid, delicious things I was going to do to you. Least I can do is let us join the mile-high club.”  
“Not the same on a private jet though, is it, Babe?”  
“Okay, well, next commercial flight we’re on, I promise we’ll do it again. For now we’re tragically stuck with this queen-sized bed and an en-suite.”  
Eggsy snorted, pulling Felix back down until he was on top of Eggsy, their bodies pressed close, so they could lose themselves in a kiss that had Felix’s head dizzy with want.

They lost their clothes in a flurry of roaming hands and mouths. Felix wanted to take it slow – he _always_ wanted to spend the maximum about of time exploring Eggsy – but Eggsy needed distracting.   
“Want to be inside you, darling.”  
Eggsy purred, as he always did when Felix said such things to him, which warmed Felix’s heart but also frustrated him at how much Eggsy had been held back and starved of affection. The boy had so much to give, though Felix was beginning to get used to the idea that he was the one to benefit, and he wanted to be that person for Eggsy forever, regardless of the short time they’d had together so far.   
“Babe, the lube’s in my carry on – out there.”

Felix dropped a tiny kiss on the end of Eggsy’s nose and hopped off him, disappearing into the surprisingly roomy en-suite and searching in the under-counter cupboard. He swaggering back into the bedroom, swinging his hips just to hear Eggsy giggle, waving a foil packet and a travel sized bottle.  
“You’re kidding? They have lube and condoms…?”  
“Yup. You know how hyped up some people get on missions.”  
“I dunno whether to be impressed or grossed out that they thought of that.”  
“Be impressed for now, it’s going to serve us well.”

Eggsy laughed, reaching up to drag Felix to him.  
“I know you’re tryna take my mind off things,” he murmured between wet presses of his mouth to Felix’s ear and neck and shoulders, “you should get on that.”  
He didn’t want to stop kissing Eggsy, tasting his sweetness, breathing whispers of care and adoration into each other’s mouths as Felix breached him with one lube-slick finger, determined to be gentle but encompassing – forcing Eggsy’s mind to be on nothing but how Felix was going to make him fall apart.

“Please, Fe,” Eggsy’s moan was enough to make Felix feel as though he might crumble if he didn’t get inside him, needed to feel him, needed Eggsy to understand how important he was.  
“Okay, Eggs, relax for me.” He pushed forward, slowly breaching, Eggsy’s fingers clutching at the broad shoulders presented for him. “You look incredible. Fuck,” Felix gasped, looking down between their bodies, watching himself enter, until he was pressed flush. “God, Eggs, you’re just… feels so good.”

He held still, just long enough for Eggsy to shift his hips, a beautiful, needy little whimper rising from the back of his throat, before he moved, building his rhythm in time with the gorgeous sounds coming from Eggsy.  
“”Shh, Baby,” he whispered, sucking an earlobe between his lips, not because he actually wanted to quieten the noises, but because he figured Eggsy would want to go back out there without knowing everyone had heard him lose it so gloriously.

Eggsy grabbed Felix’s hand, biting and sucking on his crooked finger to distract himself, though Felix had a feeling the long groan that drew out of his own throat was probably undoing all Eggsy’s good work at almost-silence. Felix pressed down, making sure his stomach was pushing on Eggsy’s dripping cock, managing smooth movement until Eggsy keened in desperate pleasure and came between them, the delicious squeeze and shudder making Felix lose his rhythm, picking up into less-controlled passion until he tipped over the edge and slumped by Eggsy, his face smooshed into a pillow.

Eggsy needn’t have worried, as Felix managed to convince him to nap after their shower, and by the time they awoke and went back into the main cabin, the others were only just being woken from their skybeds and moving upright, ready for descent into RAF Northolt. 

“Have we had anything from HQ?” Eggsy asked in the slightly overfull cab as they barrelled toward the shop.  
“Nothing yet,” Felix admitted, and Ginger just shook her head, fingers flying over the screen of her tablet. Harry just stared through the window, watching the broken white lines between their lane and the next, his face pale.

Before they fully entered the environs of the shop, Ginger passed her tablet to Felix with an apologetic sigh. It was open on a news page, showing an image of the blown-out store front, cordoned off and with police and fire trucks littered around.  
“Shit,” Felix breathed, “change of plan.” And he gave a new address to the cabby.

When they arrived at the Estate, weak morning sun finally breaking through, Felix was unsurprised to see the building was barely standing. The entire east wing was nothing but dust and ashes, and everything else was charred. The only saving grace was that Merlin’s workspace had been in the basement of the west wing, and he was certain that’s where the call had come from. So even though the blast they’d seen had looked bad, Felix was sure it hadn’t claimed Merlin.

The theory was supported when they made their way through the wreckage and discovered Roxy sifting through rubble.  
“Oh, thank God you’re back. Harry!”  
“Tell me,” was all the man said, leaning heavily on the cane Ginger had insisted he use.  
Roxy pulled herself upright, straightening her tweed jacket and going into agent-mode.  
“1824 hours Merlin instructed all present at the Estate to immediately evacuate, through both the alarm system and verbal message over the speakers. All staff immediately left the premises, using vehicles in the garages, as per protocol. At 1839 a missile was seen from the Guildford road primary meeting zone, where staff had congregated awaiting orders and shortly after an explosion was noted in the area of the Estate. Two more missiles immediately followed. Agent Tristan instructed all staff to leave for their pre-agreed safehouses, again, as per protocol. Agent Bors informed myself and Tristan that he had been with Merlin when he’d received an alarm notification indicating the arrival of the first missile and Merlin had instructed him to leave and said he would follow as soon as he had followed his own procedures. It was at that point it was verbally noted that Merlin had not travelled with the evacuees, and I instructed Bors and Tristan to travel to the safehouses so they could oversee the rest of the staff, and I would return to establish the whereabouts of Merlin.”

She took a huge breath.  
“Shit, Harry. Galahad. I can’t believe it’s really you.”  
“Thank you, Agent Lancelot. You should return to your own safehouse now.”  
Roxy looked to Eggsy with pained eyes.  
“It’s complicated,” Felix heard Eggsy whisper to her as he pulled her in for a hug. “Everyone’s safe though?”  
“Yes. Shaken up, of course. But-,”

Felix’s focus on her words was interrupted by his glasses coming back to life, and he could see by Roxy and Eggsy’s faces that theirs had, too. The image was filled with green eyes, a sweep of auburn hair artfully across one.  
“You’re too close,” a drawling masculine voice whispered.  
“What? Move back then.” The eyes looked away from the camera, a clear flash of annoyance.  
“I can’t; the tripod.”  
The woman huffed and there was the scrape of a chair over linoleum. The camera refocussed and suddenly they were looking at an attractive redhead, wearing a fitted crimson shirt that should have been clashing, but somehow worked, even with the bright red lips, too.   
“Kingsman, I’m so pleased to finally have your attention. Your little technical wizard really likes to keep the access locked down, but we got through to him eventually.”  
“What do you want?” Felix growled, finger on the transmit button, but the woman didn’t respond, and he realised she couldn’t hear him when she launched into something that sounded like a prepared speech. It also made him realise she must be broadcasting this across all of the glasses simultaneously.  
“Destroying your headquarters was only the first stage. Your little rats have been scurrying where they don’t belong, making themselves unable to be ignored. They are interfering with my operations, and I won’t have it.” The woman actually stamped her foot, and he saw his own shocked face reflected by Roxy and Eggsy. 

“I’m going to give you something else to worry about for a while until I have everything in place. And don’t worry about your wizard. I’ll send him back to you. It might be in pieces, but you’ll get him back.” She devolved into a high-pitched girlish giggle, and the camera wobblily tracked around, an empty 1950s style diner visible behind the woman, coming to a stop on a beaten Merlin, strapped tightly to a metal chair. He raised his head slowly, more bruises visible on his face, a still bleeding cut on his lip, looking right into the camera with a snarl, bright hazel eyes flashing in fury.  
“Shut it off,” the woman hissed, and the feed went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Would love to hear your thoughts.


	3. London

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Harry swung for Eggsy, getting careless, and Eggsy easily blocked. Eggsy wasn’t using the walls anymore, bouncing casually on the balls of his feet instead, looking far too relaxed. In the old days – the pre-Valentine days – that would have had Eggsy on his back faster than he could blink.  
>  “Eggsy…” Harry warned.  
> “Not gonna hurt ya, Haz. You need to build back up.”  
> “And how am I expected to do that when you’re treating me like I’m porcelain?”_

“What do we have?” Tequila asked, lounging on the chaise.   
Felix hadn’t even known about this safehouse, deep in the centre of London, the top three floors of a modern apartment skyscraper. Harry was the one in the know, and he’d taken them there – known the code for the door unerringly, so he was obviously solidly having a return of his memories. Though he’d said nothing much. Certainly nothing about Merlin, after that ‘husband’ bomb he’d dropped over in the US, and it wasn’t as though either Felix or Eggsy were going to start questioning him.

Roxy was busy setting up the electronic hardware they’d managed to salvage from the Estate.  
“I don’t know. They must have taken Merlin’s own computer. This is just the set-up from the bullpen that Harry told me to bring.”  
“It’s Merlin’s default. Everything’s backed onto it, and it’s never been on the network so it’s safe from external attack, but he encrypts. We won’t be able to access anything,” Harry shrugged, strangely disinterested by the proceedings, sitting at the kitchen island and sipping black tea. 

Eggsy pulled Felix away, keeping his voice low.  
“I’m worried about Harry, Fe. He’s, what’s it? Disassociating?”   
“I think you’re right. If we get him to agree, take him to the gym – get him to work some of that out.”

The triplex had bedrooms on the second floor and a huge gym, with floor to ceiling windows looking out over the Thames, on the top floor. It took surprisingly little for Harry to agree to go there, and both Eggsy and Tequila ended up going with him. Roxy wanted to keep working on the hardware, with a direct line with one of Merlin’s best techs, Danny, who was holed up in a safehouse a hundred miles away, and Felix and Ginger decided to brave a trip to the supermarket for supplies.

“What does she want?” Ginger asked as they roamed the aisles, throwing easy meals into the basket Felix carried.   
“Kingsman out of the way. We must have been investigating her in some way, though I don’t recognise her. Roxy got through to all the agents at the safehouses, although there’s a few out on missions right now, and everyone got the message, but no one knew her.”  
“So we have nothing. No name. No idea what it is your agency is apparently messing with that’s angered her. No idea how she’ll react next. No idea what we need to do to stop it.”  
“She’s threatening Merlin. At the moment that’s our focus.”  
“Because of him and Harry?”  
“No. Because he’s our Merlin.”

* * * * * 

When they got back to the apartment, Roxy was grinning happily.  
“Not quite there, but nearly. Give me another hour.”  
She waved her phone at Felix and he could see a video streaming – watched as Eggsy executed a series of flips and spins, using the walls and machinery of the gym, heard tinny claps, from Tequila presumably as Harry would need more than amnesia to clap an agent simply doing what they were trained for.  
“You should go watch. Looks like it’s coming back to Harry. You’d never know he’d been gone so long.”

Felix left Ginger with Roxy and went up to the gym. Tequila was dressed to work out, but he wasn’t doing anything – it was his video Roxy was streaming – as he stood at the edge watching Eggsy and Harry spar. He could understand why Roxy would think Harry hadn’t suffered ill-effects from his absence, but Felix had ten years on her experience, and he could see the way Harry was favouring his right side, and the way Eggsy had spotted it and was pulling his punches.

Unfortunately, it was apparent Harry had noticed too, and it was clearly pissing him off. He swung for Eggsy, getting careless, and Eggsy easily blocked. Eggsy wasn’t using the walls anymore, bouncing casually on the balls of his feet instead, looking far too relaxed. In the old days – the pre-Valentine days – that would have had Eggsy on his back faster than he could blink.   
“Eggsy…” Harry warned.  
“Not gonna hurt ya, Haz. You need to build back up.”  
“And how am I expected to do that when you’re treating me like I’m porcelain?”

Eggsy opened his mouth to respond, but Felix decided he could step in.  
“Eggs, as soon as Roxy’s got everything set up, what are we doing?”  
“Going to get Merlin, why?”  
“And do you expect Harry to stay behind?”  
Eggsy snorted, “He ain’t gonna do that.”  
“No, he isn’t. So it might be best if you actually stretch him with the sparring.”

Eggsy looked doubtful, but he shrugged, lunging forward with more force to strike at Harry, who moved at the last possible second. He staggered back a moment but shook it off, pulling his stance back in, but defensive, waiting for Eggsy’s next move. Eggsy feinted right, before striking left, and Felix knew it was to give Harry a greater chance by moving to his stronger side. They moved in concert for a while, each moving to strike and defending in equal measure, until they both had a sheen of perspiration.

Felix was going to call a moratorium for the time being – no one had slept enough in the last twenty-four hours, and it had already been a long day – but Harry’s face got that clenched jaw of determination that Felix had long thought reminded him of Merlin (and he knew why, now).  
“Stop holding back,” he hissed, moving into Eggsy’s space.  
“I’m not gonna-,” Eggsy blinked, taking in the light of determination in Harry’s one good eye. “Fine.”

Eggsy pushed Harry, making him stagger, spinning his body elegantly until he could twist his forearm over Harry’s throat from behind. Harry’s mouth opened in shock, but then curled into a smile that was almost joyful. Felix couldn’t even say what he did then – a complex spiral of motions that ended up with Eggsy on his back looking up at Harry’s smug grin.  
“Told you,” Harry said, jumping up with more litheness than he’d heretofore shown since they’d got him back.

Felix noted the minute wobble as Harry stepped away, and handed him the cane without comment before helping Eggsy up.  
“You feel happier?”  
“Yeah, a bit. He isn’t ready, though, and you know it. We’d better hope this is a no contact extraction.”  
Felix nodded, but they both knew it was unlikely to be as simple as that.

* * * * * 

After showers and pasta, everyone gathered around the reconstructed computer set-up, which consisted of three monitors and two keyboards, and a lot of wires.  
“It all turns on and Danny told me it will work once we can access it. But we don’t have any of Merlin’s access codes. Danny says he’ll come into the city and try to hack into it if he needs to, but he says it will be easier if we can just work out what he’d use.”  
“No way,” Eggsy insisted. “Merlin probably uses some random sixteen-digit code. We can’t guess that.”  
“You aren’t far off,” Harry smiled. “It’s twenty digits.”

He moved the one of the keyboards, rapidly typing, including several judicious uses of the shift key. Of course, Ginger and Tequila knew no better, but the rest stared at him open mouthed.  
“A coded mnemonic,” he shrugged, pressing ‘enter’, revealing a desktop that looked just like any other, with a standard landscape image as the background.  
“But he told you his password?” Eggsy questioned with a furrowed brow.  
“Out of character, of course,” Harry admitted. “He actually has six different ones he rotates. Pure chance I got the right one first time. Looked good though, didn’t it?”

“But, but…”  
“Eggs, don’t overthink. We have a mission to plan,” Felix put a secure hand on his back.  
“I know we kept very quiet about the true nature of our relationship, Eggsy, and I’m sorry we couldn’t be honest with you. With King in charge it would have been a very bad idea. But I promise there is no one on earth Merlin trusts more than me, and the feeling is entirely mutual. I have his passcodes for exactly this kind of scenario, and I’m thankful he didn’t change them when he thought I was gone.”  
“I suspect there was an element of denial in that,” Felix suggested quietly and Harry smiled weakly, shifting the keyboard over to Roxy so she could begin clicking through the files on the desktop.

Felix knew it might take a while, even with Ginger at her shoulder and the pair of them quietly discussing each document they opened, which, surprisingly _weren’t_ encrypted, Ginger making notes on her ubiquitous tablet. Felix sat back on the sofa, pulling Eggsy to nestle between his legs, back to his chest.  
“So, when did this happen?” Harry asked.  
“Not long ago. I was giving Eggsy some additional training and, well, you know.”  
“I suppose I do. Even if my similar incident was almost twenty years ago.”  
“You kept your relationship quiet for that long?”  
“Yes. It helped that when it began it simply wasn’t the done thing. People would call us an old married couple with no idea of how close to the truth they were. And, as such relationships became more accepted and expected, we were already firmly cemented in people’s minds as two grumpy old bachelors. There’s none so blind as those who won’t see,” he shrugged. “You knew though, didn’t you Percival?”  
“I, uh, I suspected it. More so after, you know, after you were gone.”  
“Indeed.”  
Felix blushed, feeling as though Harry was seeing straight through him.

Harry just smiled.  
“Don’t feel guilty, Percival. I can quite imagine Hamish’s uncontrolled emotions, that he would have kept locked up tight around anyone else. He always had a bit more of a connection with you, I’m not surprised some of his need for contact bled into your friendship.”  
Felix wanted to ask how Harry knew, though he managed not to, as it would have been an insult to the man, who had been the agency’s top spy for almost as long as Felix had been alive.  
“Just,” Harry said softly, his eye not leaving Felix’s, “thank you for caring for him when I couldn’t.”

“Right, we have something,” Roxy announced, and Felix breathed a sigh of relief at the distraction. “It looks as though Merlin has been collating data on multiple seemingly unconnected missions relating to the drug trade over the last six months, because he thinks there’s a correlation. It seems there have been batches of what the police believe are tainted drugs, leading to higher incidences of ODs. Officially, the sources are all different, but Merlin found a link in South America and he thinks someone’s producing enormous quantities of low-quality drugs of all kinds – flooding the market cheaply and putting other producers out of business. Turning the drug trade into a monopoly.”  
“Is that bad?” Tequila asked. “They’re all breaking the law, are we really worried about their businesses?”  
“No,” Felix agreed. “However, we can be worried about the people who are trapped into a supply that’s increasingly likely to kill them. Particularly if the local dealers are then further cutting drugs with dangerous substances.”

“So,” Ginger said, “who do we need to speak to about this?”  
“Merlin found links to a woman called Poppy Adams, but she’s in the wind. The rumours he traced have her as an arms dealer, but she seems to be branching out into drugs. It’s a recent change to her business model, which seemed to be providing weapons to warlords and terrorist organisations, but Merlin hasn’t been able to determine why. And no one knows who she is. It isn’t a real name. I think his investigations have triggered her, and that’s why she’s targeted Kingsman, because no one else has ever made the connection, and even as an arms dealer she was a mystery. A lot of people seem to not believe she’s even real, that she’s a front for some South American cartel.”  
“We know different though,” Felix said.  
“She is real, and she’s a redhead with an excessive fondness for the 1950s,” Harry agreed.  
“Yes,” Roxy said, “and, according to Merlin, satellite images he’s managed to trace suggest she’s doing everything out of the middle of the Colombian Amazon.”  
“So that’s where we go,” Harry announced.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Headcanon: the apartment is the Arthur safehouse – which is why it’s so swanky, and Harry knows about it because he and Merlin never entirely trusted Chester King so they monitored his (probably highly inappropriate) use of it.
> 
> If you haven’t read the first story in the series, the conversation between Harry and Felix might be confusing – just know that Percival and Merlin had a friends-with-benefits situation for a short while after V-Day – but it was never more than that.
> 
> Plus, a reminder that the motivations and outcomes for Poppy's behaviour aren't canon


	4. Airplane

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _They garnered a few looks on the plane as they found their seats in first class, or at least Eggsy did. Unlike Harry, Roxy, and Felix, Eggsy had eschewed the Kingsman suit, though he had his in a garment bag ready to change. Ginger looked business like, and Tequila looked like a Texan oil magnate or something, and had the personality to match, but Eggsy was in low slung jeans and sneakers, and even wore a snapback._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reminder: the motivations of the baddy is similar, but not canon
> 
> And this was a bit of a sidestep from where I intended this chapter to go, but I think it's healthy for the flow 😏

Felix had insisted they allow themselves a couple more days to ensure they had the resources they needed, and so Harry could further build his strength. He still wasn’t on the form he’d been at before Valentine, but he was getting there, and Felix suspected the impetus of getting Merlin back was a large part of it. By the time they headed to the airport for their flight to Bogota Eggsy wasn’t even having to pull his punches at all when they sparred.

“Remind me again why we’re flying commercial,” Harry pouted, straightening his suit jacket as they stood in the priority boarding queue for first class.  
“Quicker. Cheaper. More subtle,” Roxy growled, sick of justifying what was clearly the smart move in the circumstances.  
“No weapons,” Harry countered.  
“Our connections in Columbia will have us sorted,” Tequila insisted, looking to Ginger for back up, but she was intently flicking on her tablet.

“Percival, look,” she passed him the tablet, opened on a New York Times article.  
“What is it?” He skimmed through an op ed about an influx of drug related deaths in New York.  
“I’m beginning to suspect it’s more than a simple case of cheap production. There’s stories like this from every major city. I believe it’s intentional.”  
“She wants to kill people off?”  
“She wants people to not trust their sources. What happens when there’s conflict between drug dealers?”  
“Well, drug wars, usually. One of the missions Roxy was looking into related to- hang on. You think she’s intentionally creating conflict. So they’ll need more weapons. So her drug business is actually only a front for her weapons business. But surely that’s incredibly small scale for someone at the level she’s rumoured to be at?”  
“It might be, except it’s getting harder for shady weapons dealers to get the big contracts. Governments are having to follow bureaucracy more and more, even the countries where I’m sure she was making most of her sales. But you destabilise them due to conflict, and they get desperate. Suddenly all sides are buying up everything they can find.”  
“So it’s money?”  
“Isn’t it always?”

* * * * * 

They garnered a few looks on the plane as they found their seats in first class, or at least Eggsy did. Unlike Harry, Roxy, and Felix, Eggsy had eschewed the Kingsman suit, though he had his in a garment bag ready to change. Ginger looked business like, and Tequila looked like a Texan oil magnate or something, and had the personality to match, but Eggsy was in low slung jeans and sneakers, and even wore a snapback.  
“Bootiful, fanks love,” he said to the flight attendant with a cheeky wink as she gave him the lager he’d requested.  
“Eggs, what are you doing?” Felix was confused – Eggsy had chosen to iron some of the estate-led traits out of his persona, but he seemed to be leaning into it hard now.  
“Two-fold,” Eggsy whispered leaning back in his seat and turning his head so his mouth was close enough to blow warm air over Felix’s ear as he leaned into Eggsy’s space. “This Adams woman clearly has some kind of network. She knew about Kingsman, and about where we were. It’s likely she’s expecting us. If she has spies checking out flights from London, she isn’t going to think I’m a Kingsman agent.”  
Damn, he was right. They _could_ be more subtle. He and Roxy and Harry screamed Kingsman to anyone who knew what they were looking for. Eggsy clocked the look on Felix’s face and winced apologetically.  
“Yeah, sorry Bruv. Only thought of it when I was in the queue and checking out the other travellers.”  
Felix snorted and flicked Eggsy’s thigh.  
“Fibber, then. You wore it because it’s comfortable.”  
Eggsy laughed and the moment of levity made Felix want to lean forward the last few inches to feel it against his lips.  
“Sorta. Kinda chose it for the other reason. You promised me…next commercial flight…easier to get out of these.”

Oh, yes, Felix had promised him. As the plane took off into the London night sky, Felix pulled the huge blanket the airline supplied until it cocooned both of them, arching his neck to the side so Eggsy could rest his face against it and drop tickling kisses. There was too much distance between them for Felix’s liking, so as soon as the fasten seatbelt light was gone, he pulled Eggsy onto his seat, which was wide enough to comfortably sit with Eggsy sideways across his lap, his legs curled up under the blanket.  
“I like being close to you,” Eggsy murmured, going back to kissing at Felix’s neck.  
“Would never be apart if I had my way.”  
“Really?”  
Felix shifted so he could look into Eggsy’s eyes.  
“Really. You know that, don’t you? Not even since day one when I realized I felt something for you- I mean… damn. I didn’t want to do it like this. I wanted all the bells and whistles. Champagne and-,”

Eggsy was looking past him and Felix was insulted for a moment, until he realised Eggsy was getting the attendant’s attention.  
“Can I help, Sirs?” she asked with utmost professionalism, choosing to ignore the position they were in, and Felix was thankful for the cover the blanket provided.   
“Yeah, do you have champagne?” Eggsy asked.  
“And strawberries?”  
“I’m sure I can organise something,” she smiled.

Felix didn’t say anything when she’d gone, just burrowed his face into Eggsy’s neck, sniffing at the musky, peppery scent he’d washed in before they’d left the safehouse, nipping occasionally when he couldn’t resist. She returned within minutes with a small tray, a man following with champagne in an ice bucket. He opened it without fuss and poured two glasses, leaving the bottle on Felix’s table, with the tray containing not only bowls of vibrant red strawberries, but pots of melted chocolate and a golden tray of pralines.   
“First class, huh?” Eggsy said with a snigger. “It’s almost like they _want_ is to fuck on this chair.”  
Felix pressed a strawberry into Eggsy’s mouth, chasing it with a kiss.

“So, Fe. What did you say you wanted to do with champagne?”  
Felix flushed, back on the spot.  
“When you came to me, your self-esteem was shot. You didn’t think you had worth, but I saw it, the moment I started to get to know you. You’re pure, Eggs, inside and out. Pure and perfect, and all mine. And the only reason I haven’t already told you how important you are to me is because I wanted it to be ridiculously perfect. Maybe we’re on our way to a dangerous mission, and there’s no way this is perfect, but if Harry being shot, and finding out about Harry and Merlin, and Merlin being taken tells me anything is that it’s stupid to put things off. I love you, Eggsy. Now and always. You’re it for me, forever.”

He doesn’t say anything for a moment, and Felix feels fear running cold down his spine, more so when Eggsy’s eyes brim. Then he picks up his frosted glass and takes a big sip of the fizzing champagne, leaning to kiss Felix, softly at first, allowing the bubbles to flow to his mouth, increasing in passion until they’re both breathing heavily and he pulls back with darkened eyes.  
“Good,” he says simply. “I’ve loved you longer than I’ve known. Took me a while to understand why my heart dipped when you weren’t close, and why I spent every moment thinking about you. But that was it. You’re stuck with me now.”  
“Nowhere else I’d rather be.”

Eggsy fell asleep on Felix’s lap. It was okay – Eggsy might be five foot eight of compact muscle, but Felix was strong, and adoration certainly helped. But when he saw the cabin crew bringing a meal around, and it coincided with his legs starting to go numb, he woke Eggsy up with gentle stroking on his back and kisses to his jawline.  
“Aww, not fair. You should have woken me earlier,” he complained as he shuffled back to his own seat. “I was hoping for at least a handjob at thirty thousand feet.”  
Felix snorted as the attendant placed his plate on the table with a wry grin.  
“Don’t worry, Sir,” she said quietly. “We’re very discreet.” Before she walked away with a _not_ very discreet snigger.   
“Oops?” Eggsy said with sparkling eyes.

When they landed, they went straight to the hotel Ginger had booked, and she and Tequila headed out to meet their contact to obtain weapons.  
“We have to assume there’ll be guards situated around the perimeter of the compound,” Roxy said, pointing to the thickly forested area on the huge map she’d spread on the suite’s dining table.  
“So we go in guerrilla style.” Harry said.  
“It is our forte,” Felix admitted. “Are you sure you won’t stay back with Ginger?”  
“Quite sure. I appreciate your concern, Percival,” Harry said, in a way that didn’t sound _at all_ like he appreciated Felix’s concern, “but I will not be separated from this chance to bring Merlin home.”

Felix wasn’t going to argue with the man. Nothing would stop _him_ if Eggsy were ever taken again. With that in mind, he led Eggsy into the room they were taking for the night. The suite had two bedrooms and a pull-out couch that Roxy and Ginger had insisted they were happy sharing, so Felix took the executive decision that Harry and Tequila could have their own awkward conversation about their sleeping arrangements when the big American returned, and he locked the door behind them. 

“It’s early,” Eggsy suggested, but as he let out a huge yawn three seconds later, Felix just kissed his nose and pulled his t-shirt over his head before drawing him to the bathroom so they could brush their teeth.

“Do you think you can sleep straight away?” he asked when Eggsy was down to the tight boxers that framed his cute bum, running long fingers over the cotton-clad flesh.  
“Fe,” Eggsy giggled. “’m not that tired.”  
“Yes, you are,” Felix insisted, as Eggsy yawned again. “And we have to be up before it’ll even be light. But I can help you relax.”  
“Do I get that handjob now?”

Felix laughed, pushing Eggsy’s boxers down and pushing him back into the bed in one move, smiling at his boyfriend bouncing onto the firm mattress.  
“I think we can go better than that.”  
“Are you keeping your suit on?” Eggsy asked as Felix climbed over him, bracing himself on his forearms either side of Eggsy’s head, knees pressing against Eggsy’s naked hips.  
Felix tilted his head to look properly at Eggsy, who was nibbling his lower lip and looking an even mix between wishing he could swallow the words and very, very hopeful.  
“You’d like me on my knees for you like this, huh? All dressed up with my mouth stretched around your cock? A smart suit and tears in my eyes from choking myself?”  
“Fuck, Fe…”  
“Well?”  
“Yes! Uh, yes, please, would you?”  
“With pleasure, my love.”

Felix elegantly pushed himself back down the bed until he was crouched over Eggsy’s already leaking dick, pressing his lips to the sensitive skin of his inner thigh just to smell the musky warmth of him, to feel the softness, to taste it with tickling flicks of the tip of his tongue until Eggsy let out a gasping exclamation of a plea for more and Felix used his tongue up the side of his cock instead, twisting it over the head, to feel the heady burst of salted flavour already forming, and wetly sinking half way down.

His fingers pressed firmly into Eggsy’s hips, grounding him as he whimpered through the pleasure. Felix could feel Eggsy’s hand roaming over his back, and imagined he was revelling in the sensation of the expensive modified fabric of his suit, and he felt the tension in Eggsy’s fingers when he took him deep, allowing the slide right into his throat. He looked up to see Eggsy staring at him in wonder as he tensed the muscles in his throat, encouraged the cut of air so the promised tears would form, held Eggsy’s gaze through that watery vision. When a tear slipped free and rolled down his cheek, Eggsy brought his hand over, gently clearing it with his thumb, whispering that Felix was amazing.

Felix wanted to return the compliment, but he wasn’t going to break that look of awe for anything, so instead he _showed_ Eggsy, humming his pleasure as he sucked and lathed his tongue over every inch of velvety skin he could reach. He pulled up only when he knew Eggsy was close, and when he could no longer get by on aborted gasps of oxygen.  
“I want you to mess me up, Eggs. Come on my face.”  
Eggsy didn’t respond, just opened his eyes very wide in shock and desire, so Felix opened his mouth, flicking his tongue over Eggsy’s frenulum and massaging his balls, which were tight and ready, until he let go, and Felix felt the hot splashes over his lips and cheek.

He paused for a moment, to allow Eggsy to look his fill at the debauchery he’d caused, before he ran his thumb through the mess and sucked it into his mouth with a happy hum. He did it again, but Eggsy sat up, dragging his hand away and slipping it between his own lips before kissing Felix like a drowning man.  
“How the fuck did I get this lucky?”  
“That’s my question. Come on, lay back, sleepy time.”  
“No, I wanna-,”  
“I know, Baby, but I’m tired too, and all I want is to be able to cuddle you and fall asleep with the scent of you all around me.”  
“I can do that.” Eggsy pulled him up the bed, and Felix discarded his clothes in record time, not caring where they landed at the foot of the bed, using his shirt to clean his face off, before wrapping his arms tight around Eggsy and pressing his nose against the back of his neck, sleep coming easy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed.  
> Mission time coming up


	5. Country Roads

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Fuck.” The exhalation was barely a breath, but Felix heard the panic in Eggsy’s voice, saw the way his entire body tensed.  
>  He looked down.  
> “It isn’t a land mine,” Eggsy said, strangely calm.  
> “No,” Felix admitted, “it would have blown by now. Some kind of pressure plate, clearly. It’ll go off if the pressure leaves it.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay. I was sick, and then I got scared of writing this. Still chickened out of action.

It wasn’t comfortable in the open-sided Jeep, particularly as Tequila apparently drove like there was a trophy in it for him. Ginger had remained at the hotel, with a knowing grin, ready to be their eyes in the sky with remote access drones, and contact through their glasses, a pair of which Roxy had brought for Tequila. They looked slightly ridiculous on his large head but they’d do the job. 

Ginger had sent the drones up as soon as dawn had risen, and spoke through the glasses.  
“There’s a ravine to the north, and walls to the east that are heavily guarded. South and West has dense vegetation and guards, though I can’t get close enough to give you precise numbers. At least a dozen.”

She’d keep an eye on movement, but they couldn’t afford for the enemy to catch sight of the drones, and she was mainly keeping an ear out for them needing her technical assistance. It was thanks to her, though, that they had a good spot to hide the jeep off the track where it wouldn’t be spotted by patrols, so they could make the last part of the journey on foot.

“Do you have a knife, Yvain?” Felix asked Eggsy.  
“Yes, Percival, Sir,” he responded cheekily, before leaning in for a quick kiss. “Don’t worry about me, Fe, let’s just get Merlin out and wipe this place off the map.”  
Felix trusted Eggsy, but this was closer together in action than they’d needed to be before, and he was feeling every ounce of concern possible, a nasty feeling crawling up his spine. There was a reason why Kingsman didn’t allow missions between anyone romantically linked, and Felix felt the danger of it.

They skirted the thick forest, Harry and Eggsy taking point, Felix and Roxy flanking, and Tequila bringing up the rear. Ginger could watch from a distance, confirming there were no troops close. No words were spoken by the five of them, simply following the plan and the occasional hand signal. 

The almost peaceful trek, surrounded by gentle birdsong, was brought to a sharp stop.  
“Eight men, coming from the east, straight for you,” Ginger hissed into the coms.  
“They must know we’re here,” Roxy risked, crouching and drawing a weapon, eyes forward.   
Felix shook his head, gesturing for her to move wider. They’d flank the enemy. Tequila did the same on the other side, surprisingly quiet in the thick undergrowth.

Harry followed Roxy and Felix moved closer to Eggsy, unwilling to be separated.  
“Fuck.” The exhalation was barely a breath, but Felix heard the panic in Eggsy’s voice, saw the way his entire body tensed.

He looked down, as he heard a gunshot to the south east. Roxy. But the responding yell wasn’t one of injury, so Felix focused, to what he didn’t want to see.   
“It isn’t a land mine,” Eggsy said, strangely calm.  
“No,” Felix admitted, “it would have blown by now. Some kind of pressure plate, clearly. It’ll go off if the pressure leaves it.”  
“Indiana Jones.”  
Felix recognised the reference to the beginning of one of the movies Eggsy had insisted he watch. Harrison Ford trying to claim some golden antiquity by swapping it for a bag of equally weighted sand. He had a feeling the endeavour hadn’t ended that well. It needed to go better this time.

He shoved Eggsy hard, sliding onto the pressure plate in the same move.  
“No!” Eggsy screamed, rolling upright, racing back to Felix.  
“Go. You work best with Harry. He needs you for this.”  
“No way. I’m not losing you.” Eggsy’s eyes were filled with tears.  
Felix couldn’t console him.   
“Ginger, tell everyone to disappear.”  
“No, Felix.” Eggsy’s voice was a desperate whine, even as Ginger’s voice came through the comms.  
“Give me this, Eggsy. I was never going to let it be you.”  
“Please,” Eggsy whispered.  
“I need you to get to Harry. He needs Merlin after all he’s been through. He deserves his happy ending.”  
“So do I. So do you. I love you, Fe.” Eggsy’s pout was heartbreaking, but Felix had to stay strong.   
“Yvain. Fulfil your mission requirements.”  
“You can’t…”  
“Eggsy, I love you. So much. You’re my life. But in this moment, there’s no alternative. Those guards are coming, you can hear them. Disappear. Don’t make this be in vain.”

Eggsy gave him a final, sorrowful look, sinking into the shadows with a sob.

Felix couldn’t give him hope. It could still go very wrong. This was for Merlin, and for Harry. But he’d never leave his boy voluntarily. He thought about what stoic Merlin would do in the same situation, and almost managed a smile when he thought of it.

“Almost heaven, West Virginia…” His tenor was a little high, but he wasn’t looking for any awards, simply attention.  
The noises in the underbrush became louder; he knew he had two choices, and he really didn’t like the first one. The bushes parted, and several black-clad guards entered the area. One, the leader, possibly – he was bigger and seemed to have more weapons strapped to him than the others – raised a gun. The others just looked confused.  
“What are you doing?” he barked in heavily-accented English.  
“Checking the acoustics, what are you doing?”

Plan B was looking thankfully more likely. Nothing about their approach or stance suggested they realized what he was standing on, even if he was certain this was one of Poppy Adam’s inventions. They just appeared bemused, probably labelling him as some mad Brit – if they’d spent any time with the inherent random fury that was Merlin on a mission it would help Felix’s case.

He let them come closer, thankful his weapons were all holstered. That’s right, just a harmless, eccentric Englishman, keep moving.   
“Garcia, cuff him. Madam will want to know why he’s here.”  
“Probably here for the other one, sarge.”

The boss growled at the backchat and gestured Garcia forward with the tip of his weapon. Felix watched as the others seemed to move forward with him, several steps closer to what was needed. Felix held his wrists out peacefully, with a small smile. It made Garcia furrow his brow, but he came closer anyway, swinging silver cuffs off a finger. Felix let him clip one on, felt the man relax, feeling safety too soon. This move was riskier than the one he’d played Eggsy with, and he knew he had seconds to make it work. As Garcia raised the second cuff, Felix yanked him forward, sliding the man onto the plate as Felix stepped off. 

Garcia had no idea, moving with a confused yell. Seconds, that’s all he had. Felix ran back into the bush, the air of a bullet passing too close, panicked shouts rending the air. He twisted, threw himself painfully awkwardly behind a thick tree. The explosion shook it, blasting debris past his ineffectual safe zone.

There was no time to suffer. He stood, taking in the situation. Garcia was as gone as any man standing directly on top of a mine would be. Felix had no idea what the charge had been, but Poppy Adams clearly believed in overkill. Everyone else was at least stunned, a couple seemed like they wouldn’t be getting up anyway, but he still double tapped them efficiently on his limping way past, along with the ones that were only moaning in pained disorientation. 

The whole thing had taken fewer than five minutes, but he rushed anyway when he heard desperate cries. He heard Harry’s words first, soothing an inconsolable Eggsy.  
“Eggsy.”  
Eggsy didn’t hear him, though the others turned in shock, and Harry looked with relieved tears in his eyes, shaking Eggsy and pointing.

“Felix! I thought…you were.”  
Eggsy flung himself across the space, and Felix held his arms out, only to be stunned by the vicious left hook.  
“You utter fucking bastard,” Eggsy sobbed, pulling Felix back up to hug him with rib crushing ferocity.  
“I’m sorry, baby.” Felix hugged him back almost as hard.  
“How could you let me think…?”  
“I didn’t know it would work.”  
“You are _never_ to do that again.”  
Felix didn’t respond. He couldn’t. It was his job as a Kingsman to take the hits, and he knew, if a situation ever came down to him and Eggsy again, he’d do the same.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, clearly heavily borrowed from the movie, but I was never going to kill Percival (and they shouldn't have killed Merlin, though it was pretty obvious they did it because they realised it was too much to have two movies with miraculous saves. To which I say, so re-write the damn script (still not over it, obvs)


	6. Denouement

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it. It was meant to focus on Merlin and Harry, but it was too much fun to steal Merlin away by kidnap, so hey, ho it became another Percival/Eggsy story. But they're cute, so I'm happy with that.
> 
> A few violence-based warnings in the end note

“We need to consider our options,” Harry clearly wasn’t going to let sentimentality derail the mission, but Felix appreciated it despite the firm set to his jaw. They had a job to do.  
“They knew we were here.”  
Tequila was leaning casually against a tree but his eyes were constantly roaming, looking for the enemy.  
“True. And we don’t know why or how. We need to get to the main building. Ginger?”  
 _“Yes, boss?”_  
“What are you seeing?”  
 _“Not a lot. One of the drones is down. From behind. Could have been a malfunction, but I don’t think so. We’ve been made.”_

“So we go in hot. Eight of theirs are down. Might only be four left.”  
Eggsy looked to Felix, asking for back up.   
“I don’t think we can assume there’s only four.”  
Eggsy’s shoulders slumped, but Felix continued, “We have to go in anyway, simply be prepared for more. And not _too_ hot. It’s safe to assume they could have pretty big weapons, even if those eight were only standard automatics. We sneak, while assuming they can see us coming. Just don’t make a target of yourselves.” 

It was a subdued bunch that continued their way through the thick undergrowth. They went as quiet as they could, but no one listening out could fail to hear them coming. When they arrived at the large clearing that contained the main building everyone stopped, spread out along the tree line.  
“No movement,” Roxy confirmed.  
“We can’t make the main building without breaking cover,” Tequila clarified.   
“I won’t make anyone take the risk,” Harry said. “This isn’t an official mission.”  
“It kinda is though, Haz. We’re getting our Merlin back.”  
Harry smiled weakly at Eggsy’s words, looking down as if to check his weapons, but hiding the emotion.

There was a crack, and a black-clad body tumbled off the roof of the building, hitting the ground with a flat thud.   
“Apologies, gentlemen,” Roxy said, checking her weapon. “I’m afraid he clocked me and went for a radio.”  
“Move out,” was Harry’s only response after a brief nod of acknowledgment. 

Felix didn’t like it, as they made their way carefully into the cleared space. Kingsmen didn’t go into missions with barely any intel. Didn’t enter enemy territory without knowing what they were up against. And certainly didn’t walk out into a space with barely any cover like a collection of sitting ducks.

So, he wasn’t expecting only one person to burst out from the main door of the building. Tall, with the high sun glinting off some kind of arm armour.  
“What the fuck? Charlie? What the actual…?”  
Felix peered closer. It was Charlie, looking _rough_. He’d always been a thug wrapped in the body of an upper-class twit, but now he looked like one. Shaven head and a wild, slightly insane, gleam in his eyes. And, as Felix peered, he realised the arm wasn’t covered in armour. The glint… it _was_ the arm. He looked like a really cut-price Winter Soldier. 

His gait was uneven as he walked down the steps, the spark of insanity getting stronger as he got closer. The reason for his confidence in the face of five armed opponents became apparent when a dozen more foot soldiers came around the side of the building, weapons drawn. It didn’t feel any better that he’d been right to be concerned. He was distracted from berating himself when three approached him, and he saw the others closing in on the team. Charlie was heading straight for Eggsy though, and Felix wasn’t having that. Though he’d have to get rid of these three first.

“She doesn’t want you all alive. So I have permission to do what I want with you, _Eggy_ ,” Felix heard Charlie sneer, and at least that answered Felix’s thought about why they hadn’t simply been shot. He kicked one of his assailants away with a cracking heel to the knee, pleased with the curses the move caused, swinging around with an elbow to the face of another one. 

“I thought you were dead, Charlie,” Eggsy said, blocking a punch from his human fist.   
“It takes more than gutter trash like you to get rid of me.”  
“Didn’t you hear, Charlie? Not in the gutter anymore. Quite the gentleman these days.”  
Eggsy belied the words with a rapid headbutt right to Charlie’s nose, making the man squeal and stagger.

Felix tried to monitor their fight, but he had two coming at him, and the third was shaking his leg out.   
“For fuck’s sake.”  
Felix heard Harry just before the shot, and knew they’d stepped up the fight. The enemy weren’t about to give up, and _they_ weren’t about to let themselves get taken in. Felix drew his gun, a clean shot between the eyes of the leg man, a spinning kick to another to give himself space. The third threw herself at him, clearly trying to remove his weapon from the equation, but he simply pulled the trigger, feeling the buck and the sudden heavy weight knocking him back.

He risked a glance at Eggsy, who was blocking Charlie – easily with the flesh arm, but suffering painful hits from the metal one. Suddenly, Charlie yanked at a scabbard strapped to his waist, that Felix had only barely noticed before, but he was really seeing it now, when Charlie slid out a gleaming narrow katana. Felix breathed a sigh of partial relief; as long as Eggsy could stay away from the blade, he doubted Charlie was much of an expert. He hadn’t had long enough to learn. 

Eggsy yelled, though, too close. He hadn’t really had any training against swords – it wasn’t the standard weapon choice of the kind of enemy Kingsman had. Trust Charlie. Felix could see blood pooling from a long cut on Eggsy’s bicep, and he sucker punched his own opponent in the throat, turning back toward Eggsy, just as he landed a neat one-two in Charlie’s solar plexus, neatly swiping the sword from his shocked grasp, and sweeping it across the front of his exposed throat.

At first, Felix thought he’d missed, but as Charlie fell back, the blood seeped from the narrow cut, bubbling out as he gasped.  
Eggsy looked down at his fallen enemy, pulling his lip back in a snarl. “Gutter trash got you this time.”  
With that, he applied the point of the katana against the wound and pushed forward, cutting off the gurgles. 

Eggsy threw the sword away from himself with a clatter, letting Felix pull him close.  
“You did good. He wasn’t giving up.”  
“I know. Shithead deserved it, the trouble he’s caused the world. And you know he’s the reason this woman knew where to bomb headquarters.”  
That was a good point, and Felix kind of wished Charlie would show a new sign of life so he could end him as well.

He didn’t though, and Roxy and Tequila appointed themselves on clean up and guard duty, letting the other three head to the building that was their target.

“Gentlemen.”  
The woman behind the desk was well put together, from a distance. Vibrant red hair, neat retro clothing, and perfect crimson lipstick. But closer inspection showed clear cracks. Purple eye-bags. Bitten nails with flaking polish. A long, rough ladder in her stockings.   
“Ms Adams,” Harry responded formally.  
“I have to admit I wasn’t expecting you to find it quite so easy to get past my soldiers.”  
“They weren’t very good soldiers. Where’s Merlin?”  
Eggsy leaned against her desk and she leaned back, her eyes darting.  
“Charlie…?”  
“Even less than the rest,” was all Eggsy said, and she went pale.

She toyed with something that looked like a fountain pen, rolling it in elegant fingers.  
“I suppose you want to know my plan.”  
“Not really,” Eggsy scorned, turning to look for spaces where Merlin might be. “We aren’t here for some super villain monologue. So, you wanted to flood the market with low quality drugs, start wars between the cartels, make sure they _needed_ your weapons. We don’t care.”  
“What? How-?” she sputtered before recovering. “Well, I do produce top quality weapons.”  
“Not anymore,” Harry said, his eyes darting around as much as Eggsy’s. “Where is Merlin? You don’t want me to have to ask again.”  
“No, I suppose I don’t,” she said with a sigh, stabbing the nib of the pen into her neck before Eggsy could stop her.  
“What are you doing?”  
“You were wrong, you know,” she wheezed. “The drugs are actually very high quality. Designed to kill very effectively. I should never have listened to Charlie. He said you’d be easy. We should have been relaxing by a pool by now. But instead…”  
Her breath rattled in her chest but she showed no other signs of distress, even as a tear of blood formed in the corner of her eye. Her head slumped forward onto the desk even as Harry leapt forward. It was too late.

“But…?” Eggsy was distraught.  
“He can’t be…” Harry whispered.  
“No. Come on, you two. He’s here.”

In the end, it took the five of them two hours to find him, under a secret trapdoor in one of the outbuildings – filthy and tired and a little bit bruised, but otherwise, miraculously, no worse for wear. 

Felix presumed the reunion between Harry and Merlin was intense, though he’d felt the need to shield Eggsy’s eyes and back away after the first few minutes of intense eye contact, as he felt there was a very real risk of combustion otherwise. 

That had been two days ago, and Felix hadn’t seen Harry _or_ Merlin since they got to the resort. He’d figured they deserved some downtime, and Merlin had more than agreed. And he and Eggsy had their earlier break cut short, so were making the most of this one. Luckily, the resort had cabanas, and they’d spent the day so far hiding from anyone who might demand their attention, behind the flowing chiffon curtains, only breaking out intermittently to cool off in the lazy river that ran through the complex and to wave one of the servers over for fresh drinks in coconut shells. 

Felix was just beginning to doze off with Eggsy’s head resting against his shoulder when the curtain was pulled back and Harry appeared, looking refreshed, and more impish than Felix had _ever_ seen him. Merlin followed more sedately, but they both climbed onto the mattress, clutching their own drinks – in hollowed out pineapples.  
“You look happy,” Eggsy murmured, not bothering to move.  
“Aye,” Merlin agreed, slurping his drink.  
“We talked a lot,” Harry said.  
“Talked?” Eggsy asked with a smirk.  
“Amongst other things that are nae any of yer business, child.”  
“Hey!”  
“Have respect for your elders, Eggs,” Felix laughed.  
“And betters,” Harry said, tossing his nose in the air, though he couldn’t help bursting into a joyous laugh.

“I can’t believe that mess is over,” Eggsy said, nuzzling harder against Felix’s side.  
“Well, the mess has only just begun. The Estate…”  
“It’s not like Kingsman don’t have plenty of other property, darling,” Harry soothed.  
“Aye, and it’ll need a new Arthur. I’m not doing that any more.”  
Felix glanced at Harry, but he was resolutely looking away.  
“I still can’t get over her psychotic plan,” Eggsy said.  
“Well, drugs are bad, mkay,” Felix said with a wry laugh.  
“Lucky we don’t use any,” Eggsy agreed.  
“Aye, I’ll be off them. My plants all went up in the explosion.”  
“What?” Eggsy gasped.  
“Poor Merlin,” Harry chuckled. “We’ll find you somewhere with a greenhouse for your special plant friends.”  
“Hang on,” Eggsy sat up, “are you telling me you were growing-,”  
“Ssh, dinnae say a word, lad, and I might let you have some when the new ones mature.”

Eggsy lay back against Felix with a sniff.  
“Did you know?” he whispered.  
“Ssh, baby, don’t annoy your dealer.”  
Eggsy shrugged, finally smiling, and closed his eyes, warm against Felix’s side, and Felix ignored Merlin and Harry slipping away to find more pineapples, drifting into sleep with his love safe in his arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some death-based violence against bad guys. They all deserved it, promise.  
> Minor drug references. Merlin smokes weed? Say it ain't so 😆
> 
> You didn't even get any Merlin/Harry action. I might add a pwp chapter of their reunion later, if there's any call for it.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed. Would love to hear your thoughts.


End file.
